Friday, 15 July 2016

Longwood Gardens and why you shouldn't go back to places!

The world is divided in two types of people - 'gardening people' who love nothing more than spending their time mucking about with dirt and 'non-gardening people' who don't! Can you tell which one I am?

David is a 'gardening-person'. He loves gardens. He spends hours and hours at home coaxing exotic plants to grow in our harsh Australian soil. In spring, when our quiet little patch of the planet lights up with colour it makes all the work worthwhile - or so he thinks. I like gardens too - just not working in them!
The definition of an annual is 'disappointment once a year'. I plant tulips every year, and every year without fail, they flower in early spring exactly during the two weeks in which we are travelling and away from home. I have tried planting them earlier - and later - even changing the dates of our holidays. Nothing ever works. It is always the same - a beautiful riot of colour blooming in our garden for no-one to see, except the twenty-somethings, and whoever heard of a twenty-something son appreciating the beauty of a flower planted by his mother.

Except for tulips, and the occasional very disappointing annual, I avoid gardening as much as possible. I do love looking at gardens though, and in three decades of travelling together David and I have visited gardens all around the world - in fact I am quite the expert on other people's gardens.

As an expert in this field (self-appointed - is there any other kind!) I can confidently tell you that Longwood Gardens near Wilmington, Delaware is one of the world's great gardens. Do you remember last week's post on Winterthur and its 90,000 objects d'art - well, Longwood is Winterthur without the objects - pretty close to my idea of heaven. Ironically Longwood was created by another Du Pont, Pierre this time not Henry, who created Winterthur. I got the impression the Du Ponts had a family rivalry going - as in 'my camellias/rhododendrons or whatever are better than yours this year.' Wouldn't you just love to have been a fly on the wall at some of their family get togethers.

Inside the Conservatory

As lovely as Longwood is however, sometimes you just shouldn't go back to places. When David and I first visited Longwood in the year 2000 the twenty-somethings were pre-teens and the gardens were a wonderland of discoveries. Returning in 2016 I think we expected to recapture some of that family magic even without our now-adult children in tow. Perhaps we could have, except our most treasured memory was of the water-platter lilies - huge aquatic plants shaped like serving platters and several feet across. We had never seen anything like them. This time the water-platters were mere pygmies of the lily world, struggling to reach a foot or two in diameter. It turns out they reach their peak in mid-July, several weeks after our visit. I won't lie - this was a disappointment.

Our second most treasured memory were the water fountains - soaring sprays of water dancing in the air like aquatic ballerinas. Our 2016 visit coincided with the renovation of the main fountain garden. A large area of the gardens was completely closed off, hidden behind huge unattractive wooden screens. As I said - sometimes you just shouldn't go back to places.

Water-platter lilies, in 2009

Water-platter lilies in late June 2016 - not quite the same are they!

Pygmy water-platters and closed water fountains notwithstanding, Longwood is a treasure trove of botanical delights. With 4 acres of indoor gardens in the conservatory and 1,000 acres of outdoor gardens Longwood will repay your visit many times over. I am not going to try to describe it, after all as a 'non-gardening person' I only know the names of half a dozen plants. For once, I will let my camera do the talking.

I know what this is. It is a bromeliad! We have them at home - David must have planted them.

Allow yourself plenty of time. David and I had half a day which was just enough to see most things without rushing too much.

Purchase your tickets before the day of your visit if you can. Longwood issues timed-tickets. This means that when buying your ticket you must choose a time to enter the gardens. Once inside you don't have to leave until closing time. You may not be able to purchase tickets on the day of your visit if all the time slots have already been filled. For an explanation of how the timed tickets work go to Longwood's FAQ page here.

Don't miss the water-platter lilies. The water lily display is in a courtyard accessed through the Conservatory and is easy to miss. It is open from late May until the end of October.

Don't miss the Conservatory. The indoor displays are lovely.

Got to go - I'm off to plant some tulips!

I will publish a new post every Thursday/Friday (depending on your time zone). If you want to follow our travels check back each week or enter your email address in the 'Follow this blog by email' box in the right hand sidebar just below my profile picture.For all the posts so far on our north-east USA road and cycling adventure click - here

Ha,ha,ha! Your tulips bloom when you travel every year? Why don't you change your travel plans to stay home and enjoy them? I understand your frustration, but if you work so hard to have a beautiful garden you should travel when your garden is 'asleep' Thanks for joining #TheWeeklyPostcard.

The gardens look lovely but it's clear they would have been even more spectacular with full-sized water lilies and the main fountain - unfortunately we can't control these things! When I visited Washington DC, the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was under some kind of renovation as well - it was definitely very different from the pictures I'd seen.

Time changes everything, doesn't it? I agree that sometimes it's better to leave things as they were in your memory rather than going back and feeling disappointed.

I know my memories are sometimes even better than the reality of what happened in the past:) The gardens looked beautiful and your photos were stunning. No place is ever the same twice, sorry it was disappointing the second time. Maybe the 3rd time is the charm:)

our tomatoes always come in when we are away in August/September and so our neighbors get to eath them instead of us! This looks wonderful. we now have something to stop when we drive from NYC to Washington, DC. Thanks!

Sometimes returning to a place is great fun. There is a little village in Brittany, France which we have been to three times. It has huge tides and that is what draws us. On both return visits we had forgotten we had been there until we looked around and realised how familiar it was. It has become something of a family joke now that we keep returning to places we think we haven't been before and then realise we have.

I just read your post on the Pokemon craze in Australia. I do hope there are no Pokemons in places like Longwood and Winterthur. Imagine the damage which could be done to the gardens by players trampling across the flower beds in search of these creatures.

Lyn I agree that often returning to spots can be a disappointment. We rarely do but often because there is just so much to see in this world. Longwood Gardens do look beautiful but yest the water lilly comparison made my heart sink. I would have been very disappointed.

It wasn't just the size of the lilies. It was more the fact that when we saw them the first time the boys were so excited. I think we expected to recapture that memory of having young children and seeing their sheer joy at encountering something new and surprising.

What a gorgeous garden, I am sure if it had been my first time visiting the gardens I would not have been disappointed nor even aware of what wasn't working. Love the water lily plates and the topiary trees.

I am one of those who like to take a look at gardens but I am terrible at planting (I kill every plant I touch, no joking). Thanks for letting me know about these gardens. I have been to very lovely ones that have stayed in my mind till this day.

Well, I have managed to keep a lime tree alive for a few years, but sans limes. So I'm with the other rubbish gardeners. But yes, I love looking at them! Delaware is one state we haven't crossed off, and haven't really known what to see there, other than a few historical sites. Now we do!

Carole Terwilliger Meyers 22 July 2016 at 10:48I would love to go back to Longwood Gardens. I visited for a special event in the evening and only saw a bit of the gardens. I also was quite disappointed. That topiary garden looks fabulous!